We always used three red candles and one rose colored candle.
And as our children got older they got to light candles too.
Then after Christmas, we changed all the candles to white.
Any other Christmas customs out there?
We always had an Advent calendar, with goodies, etc., to teach our children of the birth of the Saviour of the World.
And they’re still good, Christian kids!
We always had the Advent wreath and each one of the kids had an advent calendar. Stopped the fighting.
My mother also put out a baby cradle. Right after Thanksgiving, the kids could put a handful of “hay” (Easter straw) every time we did something good, and remove a handful each time we did something bad. The idea was to make sure that the baby Jesus (a Cabbage Patch doll wrapped in swadling clothes) has a soft, comfortable bed waiting for him on Christmas Eve.
Cue the Catholic guilt when you had to take away straw from Jesus’ bed!
Any other Christmas customs out there?
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We always used the 3 purple and one pink. Some years I could not find purple candles, so I used white candles to which I tied ribbons of the appropriate colors.
Also, I had 4 sons so for each week one got to light the candles each night at the start of supper, as I did the reading. The youngest one always got the duty the first week, the next youngest the second, etc. That way, the eldest son had to wait until the last week, but he got to light the most candles.
On Christmas, the candles were replaced with white or with red candles, and I would light the candles each night with an appropriate prayer prior to grace before meals.